Busking
by Dyde21
Summary: Jaune is just a poor guy who moved to, and failed in, the city. Now staying afloat by the generosity of his friends Ren and Nora, he's currently struggling to make a living. While he looks for a job, he's earning some income by playing his guitar on the street, and happens to capture the eye of a certain red head who hears one of his performances. Musician!Jaune AU, real world.


Jaune closed his hands tightly around the hand-warmer in his hands. It was starting to get a little late, which meant the temperature of the air was starting to plummet.

Still, today had been... less than productive for him. It seemed people were feeling a little less generous. But, he certainly wouldn't fault them. He was the one, after all, busking in the street hoping for spare change. No one was under ANY obligation to give him a dime. In fact, he was currently living by the kindness of his two best pals.

Having fled to the city to try and make it on his own, away from his family, he found life had been harder than he had expected. It had only taken two months for his meager savings to be burnt and he was facing eviction. Just when he was about to give up and move back home, Ren and Nora had approached him with an offer. He could stay with them for a while, split the rent, while he got his feet underneath him. Their offer, however kind, seemed almost too greedy for him to take. He was about to turn them down when Nora all but insisted and practically started moving him into their apartment on her own. Ren had reassured him that it was okay, and eventually Jaune relented.

Taking another swig of water from his water bottle, he stared down at his hands as he desperately clutched the hand warmer. Cold hands meant stiff hands, and stiff hands meant it would be even harder to put on a good performance than it already was. He couldn't afford to go home again without a decent earning.

Life seemed to enjoy kicking him while he was down, and he found it hard to find a job. Sure, he dreamed about being a musician, making a stable income with his guitar and voice, but he was realistic. He knew he would have to find a way to make an earning in the mean time. However, just because he was prepared to get a job didn't mean the city was ready to give him one. No, it seemed he just wasn't the right fit for wherever he applied. Always seeming to get another interview and come close, before getting the same call that they had "decided to go with someone else, and wished him the best."

So, desperate for something, Jaune had started busking. He was just glad he had brought his guitar from home, and that he had spent all those years learning to sing for his sisters. Unfortunately, relying on people's generosity was hardly stable and more often than not, he found himself going home with meager earnings.

So far he had managed to miss only one month's rent, which Ren and Nora insisted was okay because they knew he was putting in a serious effort, it still weighed on his conscious. Not to mention the fact that putting all his earnings towards rent meant that he had little when it came for paying for food and he often found himself eating groceries that Ren had purchased and cooked, without a way to properly reimburse them.

The guilt had even been too much for him one month, and Jaune had stopped eating all together when he couldn't buy food. Missing a day here and there wouldn't be too bad after all. Nora eventually noticed his weight loss though, and neither of his roommates were very happy. They made it _very_ clear that that was not allowed, and if they found him skipping out on meals purely for monetary reasons again, there would be trouble. Jaune hadn't pried too much, but he did know that they had grown up with very very little, and did not like seeing others in the same boat. Even if they were living comfortably, Ren making a decent wage as a chef while Nora served as a personal trainer at the gym, their memories seemed to haunt them.

Realizing he was missing his opportunity, he shook his head.

Taking another drink to soothe his sore voice after a day of singing, Jaune set down the bottle and his hand warmer. Foot traffic seemed to have picked up again so he probably only had another song or two in him before he would give up for the night.

Shifting around, he strummed a few times to make sure his guitar was still in tune.

He cleared his throat, getting some attention from curious passerby's as they saw a boy with a guitar in his hands. He readjusted his seat on an old painter's bucket that he used as a stood before he started off in a soft song.

"You are my star, you are the one, you make me smile when the world's come undone. You are the one who sweeps me off my feet, yeah."

Jaune was vaguely aware of some people moving on, some others stopped, and a few just continued to watch him curiously. It seemed his singing was at least doing it for this crowd.

"You totally rock. You're crazy and cool. Everything's all that I love about you. Girl of my dreams, you would make my life complete."

As he continued to sing through the song, he glanced around at the little crowd that had formed around him. It was a popular song on the radio, which meant people would recognize it. That always helped garner people's attention more so than his original songs.

A group of four girls were walking by, when a girl in red stopped, quickly tugging on a blond's arm as she pointed at Jaune, whispering something. The raven haired girl stopped next, looking up from a book she had been buried in when the blond had reached out and pulled her to her side to stop her from walking on obliviously. Only the white haired girl seemed to keep walking, not even registering the singer until she noticed her friends were suddenly absent from her side.

Jaune just continued to sing, offering them a brief smile before focusing on the chord changes and the chorus. A group of friends was usually likely to have at least one person leave him a few bucks. Some part of him registered that he found them to be rather cute and felt the smallest amount of pressure suddenly added to his performance.

Half way through the song, he noticed another girl stop, tilting her head curiously as she listened to him sing. His words almost got caught in his throat as he looked at her. Her long red hair was cascading down her back in a pony tail, as she hefted a rather large gym bag over her shoulder by one hand. She was wearing sweats and a hoodie, but her stark green eyes were what really drew his attention. He struggled to keep singing as he tried unsuccessfully to pry his gaze away from her and her playful smirk. Clearly she had noticed him staring at her.

He forced his head to turn to look away, fighting back a blush as he continued to sing, suddenly feeling far more pressure than before.

The chorus came up, and his burning curiosity made him look back. He just had to know if _she_ was still watching him.

"What am I supposed to do- Just sit here and not fall in love with you?"

Sure enough, she was still standing there with an amused, yet honest smirk on her face. She seemed to be enjoying herself at least. He couldn't pry his gaze away from her as he continued to sing.

"Can I do anything to conceal it? Can I lock up my heart and not feel it? Try to run from the fact that there's no turning back, I'm in love."

 _She giggled._

Oh my God. She giggled. Jaune's heart nearly exploded at the adorable sound. _FOCUS!_ Right, the song. This was a song, not a sudden confession for a random girl on the street.

Before he could continue the next part, a female voice suddenly chimed in.

"And like the autumn leaves, I just can't help myself. I'm falling there's no doubt. It's you and no one else. Is there any chance, for this dream romance? Should I just give up, what's a fool to do? Could you fall for me, like I fell for you?" The mysterious green-eyed red head finished singing.

It took all of Jaune's effort to keep playing in time, and not start clapping at her voice.

He continued to sing the rest of the song as the girl disappeared back into the crowd, clearly satisfied with having jumped in for that one part.

Shaking his head, Jaune continued to sing his heart out for the rest of the song. He couldn't let the crowd down after that after all. The song wound down and he finally ended it.

"There's no turning back, I'm in love."

He played the final few chords, before stopping and taking a deep breath.

A moment later the small crowd that had stopped around him burst out into applause.

Jaune smiled meekly, standing up and bowing politely. He tried to motion to the girl, but he couldn't see her anymore. He frowned, but soon enough people started walking up and depositing some cash and change into his open guitar case. He made sure to thank each and every person, relieved that he would be able to make his rent at this rate after all.

As he glanced around the case, taking a quick tally of it to see how much that last song had earned him, he saw another bill drop in. His eyes widened when he saw the 20 printed on it.

Reaching down he quickly grabbed it, before he reached up with his other hand and grabbed the wrist of the hand that had just deposited it.

Looking up, he was surprised to see those same emerald eyes staring back at him, both in surprise and amusement.

Words failed Jaune as he tried to remember anything. "Uh... right. You put in this, I think you grabbed the wrong bill." He offered, holding out the twenty. He appreciated the gesture, but he was pretty sure she must have grabbed the wrong bill. No one ever donated that much at once.

The girl just shook her head. "I think that was a lovely performance. It's the least I can do for allowing me to join you for part of it.

She put the cash back in his hand, closing his fist around it. "Thank you."

She thought for a moment. "But I did forget something." She said suddenly, setting down her gym bag and digging through it, fishing something out.

Jaune just looked at the money, debating offering it to her again but she seemed determined about giving it to him. His mom had always said that refusing someone's kindness was not a kindness itself, but rather never underestimate just how much the person wanted to express their feelings. He had learned that lesson extra hard after Nora and Ren were done scolding him after his little diet.

He deposited the cash in the case, and before he could stand up again, her saw that familiar hand drop another slip of paper in the case.

Curiously, Jaune reached down and picked it up. He was surprised to see a phone number hastily scrawled on it.

His eyes widened as he looked up at the red head, who was still smirking, but clearly sporting a heavy blush as she looked away.

"I mean... If you want meet up again some time. I'd love to hear you sing again." She stammered out, suddenly finding her confidence failing her.

Jaune nodded eagerly. "I'd love to!" He said suddenly.

The girl nodded.

Jaune just smiled, before he realized something. "Uh! I'm Jaune. Jaune Arc." He stammered out, offering a hand awkwardly.

The girl just laughed, shaking his hand with a surprisingly firm grip. " Pyrrha Nikos." She offered, almost with a hint of hesitation in giving out her name.

Jaune just smiled. He'd commit that to memory, he'd sooner forget his address than her name.

"Pyrrha." He repeated just to be safe.

Suddenly shivering, Pyrrha let out a breath. "Well, I should be going. I look forward to hearing you sing again." She said with a warm smile, and a wave, before she turned and continued down the street. Her bag hoisted over one shoulder, and the slightly skip in her step.

Jaune just stared down at the number, already trying to memorize it. His parents still paid his phone bill, and he made a mental note to thank them for that kindness even after he had moved away.

Jaune had turned back to his case, staring to pack it up when he saw a few more bucks being dropped in.

Looking up, he was surprised to see the girl in red smiling back at him cheerfully.

"You were amazing! That sounded so great!" She chirped happily.

"Come on Ruby, we're gonna be late!" The blonde called from down the street with the rest of the quartet. "You're too slow, he already got a hot date!"

"Yang! I was just tipping him. Just shut up!" She called out angrily, turning back to Jaune with an apologetic smile. "Sorry about her. See you around!" She chimed out happily before turning and bounding back towards her sister, slapping her sister in the back as they began to banter as they walked away.

Suddenly feeling that the night had certainly reached it climax, Jaune careful tucked away his earnings and slid his guitar back in his case. He packed everything up, grabbing the bucket, as he began to walk his way back towards the apartment. His mind drifting to the redhead, and the nagging feeling he had seen her somewhere before. Still, a soft smile graced his features as he thought about the hastily scrawled number on the piece of paper safely tucked away in his pocket.

 _Pyrrha Nikos, huh?_

XxXxXxXxX

Hey! I hope you enjoyed this. I'm currently accepting requests on my tumblr (dyde21 . tumblr . com ) and this was one of them. This... this kinda did the thing that the Mechanic prompt did. This is threatening to send me off into another massively long multichapter fic. For anyone reading this who is following my Mechanic!AU don't worry, I'm finishing that, and that is still my priority, and will be done before I even consider writing more for this AU. The next chapter is almost done, but I am doing a few prompts to keep my creative juices flowing. Honestly though, this was INCREDIBLY fun for me to write, and might be one of my favorite short stories I've written. No promises this will turn to anything more, but I definitely see some potential for it here, and if there's an interest I may write some more for it. (Not I should be doing that, considering I should be looking for a job, but hey it's ARKOS) Anyway, I hope if you're reading this that you enjoyed it and that you have a wonderful day! :D Cheers! o/


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